Refrigerating apparatus



06%. 27, 1931. H HULL REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Filed June 2, 1925 .llllllllllinukur l atentecl @ct. 2?, 1331 teen HARRY B. HULL, 0F DAYTON, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, T0 FRIGID- AIRE CORPORATION, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE REFRIGERATING APPARATUS Application filed June 2,

The present invention relates to, refrigerating apparatus and particularly to cooling units of a mechanical refrigerator. It is the usual practice, in household refrigerator manufacture, to provide a single cooling unit for cooling a cabinet and for freezing water into ice blocks or congealing desserts. A container or sleeve is usually provided for receiving trays of water or for receiving desserts. These containers are generally surrounded by cooling medium conduits and in close proximity thereto whereby the water or desserts is quickly reduced to a relatively low temperature.

One of the objects of the present invention is to reduce the cost of manufacture of a cooling unit by simplifying the construction thereof.

Another object is to operate a refrigerator more efliciently by providing for the free circulation of air in the cabinet by preventing the accumulation of large quantities of ice on the cooling unit within the cabinet.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of embodiment of the present invention is clearly shown.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a sectional View of a refrigerator cabinet with the improved cooling unit in position.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the unit with the top cover plate removed.

Fig. 3 is a front view of the unit with one of the ice trays removed, and

'Fig. 4 is a side View of the unit with the top cover plate and a side plate removed.

Referrin g to the drawings, there is shown a refrigerator cabinet having a food compartment 21 and a cooling compartment 22. A wall 23 is located between these compartments and is provided with passages 24 and 25 whereby air may circulate between the compartments. A cooling unit 27, herein shown as an evaporator, is located within compartment 22..

Unit 27 includes a coil 28 connected with an expansion valve 29. Refrigerant from a 1925. Serial No. 34,358.

condenser, (not shown) is conveyed to the valve 29 by pipe 30. Coil 28 includes a plurality of loops 32, the parallel portions of each being spaced from one another as shown at 33. A second coil 34 is provided including a plurality of loops 35, theparallel por- 55 tions of each being spaced from one another as shown at Coils 28 and 34 are adapted to inter-mesh, the lower portions of loops 32 extending within the spaces 36 between loops and the upper portions of loops 35 extending within the spaces 33 between loops 32. These loops extend within the spaces to a depth substantially equal to one-half the height of the coil and thereby form three compartments 38, 39 and 40, the top wall of the middle compartment 38 being the top of loops 35 and the bottom wall of said compartment being the bottom portions of loops 32. The ends of coils 28 and 34 are suitably connected at the back of the unit 2 7 as at 42 by welding. Y

Each compartment 38, 39 and 40 is arranged to receive a container or sleeve 43. Each sleeve comprises a plate 44 resting upon the bottom wall of its compartment and including a sheet of metal 45 hearing against the side walls and the top of its compartment, thus providing an oblong shaped container which is substantially co-extensive with the length of the compartments. Each compartment 38, 39 and 40 receives ice trays 47 or may receive desserts.

In assembling the structure, coils 28 and 34 are first intermeshed. Then the ends of these coils are suitably connected at the rear end of the unit as at 42 to thus provide a continuous conduit with the inlet and outlet at the front end of the unit. The sleeves 43 are then placed in position and then this assembly is immersed in a molten bonding material such as solder or zinc, or said material is poured over the assembly to thus maintain the parts in position and provide for relatively good heat conduction between the sleeves and coil loops. Thus heat is readily conducted through the sleeves 43 to the coils.

It is known to those skilled in the art that, in some types of refrigerator systems,

ature of the progressing refrigerant loops increases from the inlet end of the conduittoward the other end. In the present invention I have arranged coils 28 and 34 so that their temperature gradients are opposed to one another. In this manner the low temperature portion of coil 28 is adjacent the relatively higher temperature portion of coil 34 and the high temperature portion of coil 28 is adjacent the low temperature portion of coil 84. By virtue of this arrangement the front and back, as well as the intermediate portions of the cooling unit are maintained at substantially the same temperature.

Cast iron plates 49 are located on the opposite sides of the coils 28 and 34xand are held in position by clamping bolts 50. A plate 52 is carried by the plates 49 and covers the coils to prevent air from circulating along the sides of the coils 28 and 34. Plates 49 are provided with fins 51 to provide a relatively large surface exposed to the interior of the coolmg compartment 22 to provide for the ready transfer of heat from compartment 22 to the plates 49. The plates 49 are held in contact with the coils 28 and 34'merely by being clamped in position, thus providing only a relatively poor heat conductive relation between the plates and the coils. Therefore, the coils and likewise the sleeves 43 will be reduced to a relatively low temperature compared with temperature of the plates. In this-manner a temperature below freezing may be maintained at the sleeves while a temperature above freezing may be maintained at the plates. Thus water which condenses on the plates will not freeze or, should water freeze on the plates during the evaporating phase of the refrigerating cycle, it will melt during the heating phase and in neither case will numerous coatings of ice form on the plates. v

'A refrigerator has been provided which operates efficiently. If numerous coatings of ice were permitted to form on the unit, the circulation of air thereabout would be restricted and thereby the cooling of the cabinet would be impaired. In the present invention, numerous coatings of ice will not form on the sides of the unit because of the temperature of the unit at those portions. The relatively large heat absorbing surfaces of the unit provide for the adequate cooling of the cabinet.

The unit is constructed, not only to prevent the formation of undesirable ice coatings, but also is constructed to provide for cooling to a temperature below freezing at certain portions thereof where substantially no condensation takes place. Thus ice can be frozen or desserts'congealed by the unit but .ice will not form on the air cooling portion to impede the circulation of air thereabout.

While the form'of embodiment of the present invention as herein disclosed, constitutes a preferred form, it is to be understood that other forms might be adopted, all coming within the scope of the claims which follow.

What is claimed is as follows:

1. A cooling unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising in combination, two parallel cooling medium coils each including a plurality of coil loops, the loops of one of said coils adapted to extend within the space between the loops of the other of said coils to provide three compartments.

2. A cooling unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising in combination, two parallel cooling medium coils, one end of each coil being connected to the corresponding end of the other coil whereby said coils are arranged in series-relation with the inlet and outlet at the same end of said coils, each of said coils including a plurality of coil loops, the loops of one being adapted to extend within the space between the loops of the other to provide three compartments.

3. A cooling unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising in combination, a plurality of coils connected in series circuit relation. each of said coils including a plurality of loops, the loops of one coil extending within the spaces between the loops of another coil to provide an enclosure adapted to receive an ice-making receptacle.

4. A cooling unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising in combination, a plurality ratus, comprising a plurality of ice-tray supports, conduit means having a portion disposed along three sides of one of said supports and having a portion extending remote from said support, and conduit means disposed along another side of said support, said latter means cooperating with said remotely extending portion to enclose another of said supports.

6. A cooling unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising a plurality of ice-tray supports, conduit means having a portion disposed along three sides of one of said supports and having a portion extending remote from said support, and conduit means having a portion disposed along another side of said support and having a portion extending remote from said support in a direction opposite to the first extending portion, said remotely extending portions cooperating with the other portions to provide enclosures on opposite sides of the first mentioned support for receiving other of said supports.

7. A cooling'unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising conduit means, a portion of said conduit means adapted to have a tem perature gradient in one direction, another portion of said means being adapted to have a temperature gradient in the reverse direction, said portions cooperating to provide a refrigerated enclosure and being arranged with the low temperature end of one opposite the high temperature end of the other.

8. A cooling uni. for refrigerating apparatus, comprising conduit means, a portion of v ing a flat surface on one side and a plurality of fins projecting from the other side, said flat surface being in contact with the convolutions of the coil to provide a relatively small thermal contact surface between the member and the conduit.

10. Refrigerating apparatus comprising in combination, a single continuous conduit forming a refrigerating element having two or more compartments for freezing containers, the conduit having a plurality of sections in contact with the bottom of each compartment and the sections in contact with one compartment being alternated along the conduit with the sections in contact with the other compartment.

11. A cooling unit adapted to be placed in the path of circulating medium for cooling such medium, said cooling unit comprising duct means providing afreezing zone, and a heat absorbing vbody associated with the duct means, said body having fins to provide a relatively large heat absorbing surface eX- posed to the circulating medium and said body having relatively poor thermal contact with the ductmeans to maintain the body at a higher temperature than the duct means.

12. A cooling unit comprising in combination, a plurality of groups of upright loops,

one of said groups being interlace'd with the other group, said groups cooperating to provide a plurality of compartments for horizontally disposed icecream receptacles.

13. A cooling unit comprising in combination, a plurality of groups of uprightloops,

.the loops of one of said groups extending within the spaces between the loops of the other group, said groups cooperating to provide a plurality of compartments for horizontally disposed ice-making receptacles.

14. A cooling unit comprising in combination, a plurality of groups of upright loops, the loops of the groups having substantially identical symmetry and the loops of one group extending within the spaces between the loops of the other group, said groups cooperating to provide three compartments for horizontally disposed ice-making receptacles.

15. A cooling unit for refrigerating apparatus, comprising in combination, a refrigerant conveying coil having the loops thereof spaced from one another, a refrigerant conveying coil having the loops thereof extending within the spaces between the loops of the first group to provide an enclosure between the interlaced portions of said loops adapted to receive an ice-making receptacle andmeans for delivering refrigerant to said groups of loops.

In testimony whereof I hereto affixed signature.

HARRY B. 

